Gary Boas, News Editor, [email protected]Researchers face old-school challenges in developing state-of-the-art technologies. Researchers and clinicians use fiber optic-based probes for a wide range of applications – which means the probes must exhibit varying amounts of complexity. On one end of that spectrum sit the probes used for optical imaging of muscle, which can be as simple as a fiber placed in contact with the skin. On the other end sit probes used for combined optical and x-ray imaging of the breast, with high-density arrays of fiber optic sources and detectors integrated into the paddles of the mammography...Read full articleRelated content from Photonics MediaARTICLESTesting Optical Fiber: Undersea and Downhole ApplicationsMany land and undersea oil operations rely heavily on temperature sensing for improved safety and functionality in harsh environments. Silica-based optical fibers have been increasingly used for...Photonics Spectra February 2019 IssueFiber Optic Sensors Compete in Environmental Monitoring MarketModern societies are facing rising concerns about global environmental issues, including an alarming rise in pollution of our seas, waterways, land, and air. As we bear witness to widespread...EuroPhotonics Autumn 2019 IssueFiber Optics for High-Power ApplicationsSpecialty fiber components are an increasingly important part of generating and transmitting high-power laser beams for applications ranging from materials processing to laser surgery to lidar. These...Photonics Spectra February 2019 IssueBall Lenses for TelecomWith the explosion of high-bandwidth communications, fiber infrastructures are experiencing upgrades that demand improvements in both range and power at the lowest possible SWaP-C (size, weight,...Photonics Spectra September 2019 IssuePRODUCTSFaceplatesA fiber optic faceplate is the optical equivalent of a zero-thickness window providing a high dielectric strength vacuum interface that can also be used for field-flattening, distortion correction,...Photonics Buyers' Guide January 2018 IssueDARC GlassDARC Glass uses an internal absorption matrix to control the visibility of the light and images that pass through it. Observers within the specified viewing angle see bright, clear images; outside...Promoted Content January 2019 IssueCure with OmniCure® LED UV SystemsExcelitas Technologies® is a global technology leader focused on delivering innovative, high-performance, market-driven photonic solutions to meet the lighting, detection, and optical technology...Promoted Content November 2019 IssueLow-PIM Coaxial Cable AssembliesCustom Low-Passive Intermodulation (PIM) Coaxial Cable Assemblies from Pasternack offer connector options to address DAS, wireless infrastructure, multi-carrier communication systems, WISP, small...Photonics.com 5/2/2019PHOTONICS HANDBOOK ARTICLESUnderstanding Surface Quality: A Practical Guide: Surface quality is one of the most scrutinized specifications in the optics industry. It is critical that the suppliers and customers have a consistent approach during the inspection process. These guidelines are intended to help ease communication between suppliers and customers for better products and business.Surface quality has become one of the most poorly understood specifications in the optics industry. A significant portion of the confusion stems from the two major competing (and largely...Photonics HandbookConnectors and Splices: Correct Alignment Spells Success: Whether the job is splicing fibers together or connecting fibers to system devices, alignment is the key to success. This article explores the many ways to achieve that goal.Just as an electronic connector provides a pluggable connection between electronic circuits, a fiber optic connector provides an optical one. The goal is joining a fiber to a transmitter, receiver or...Photonics HandbookCharacterizing High-Speed Transmitters: The Emphasis Is on Waveforms: The basic fiber-based communications system consists of a laser transmitter which converts electrical data to intensity-modulated light, a fiber optic cable as short as a few meters or as long as 100-plus kilometers, and a photodetector that converts the information on the light back to an electrical signal.An indicator of how well the entire system performs is a measurement called bit-error-ratio (BER). Acceptable BERs range from one error per billion to one per trillion bits transmitted. It is rare...Photonics HandbookPolarization Mode Dispersion: Concepts and Measurement: The performance of high-speed, digital fiber optic communications systems depends upon how reliably the receiver is able to distinguish closely spaced bits of information. Dispersive effects — physical mechanisms that broaden transmitted pulses — degrade this process.There are three fundamentally different dispersive phenomena in optical fiber, of which polarization mode dispersion (PMD) is the most complex. In digital multimode fiber systems, a light pulse...Photonics HandbookWHITEPAPERSEffects of Sterilization Methods on Key Properties of Specialty Optical Fibers Used in Medical DevicesOptical fibers with different types of polymer coatings were exposed to three sterilization conditions: multiple autoclaving, treatment with ethylene oxide and treatment with gamma rays. Effects of...Photonics.com 2/25/2019Annular Heating of Optical Fiber with a CO2 Laser Using Reflective Axicon ElementsBy offsetting the light structure, precise localized zone heating and annealing of specific areas at a fiber’s surface can be achieved as well. This is essentially a passive device into which active...Photonics.com 2/1/2020Solutions for Fiber Optic ApplicationsHigh temperature polymer coating and sheathing products protect and support the latest fiber optic technology.Photonics.com 9/10/2019Interferometric Inspection of Optical Fiber End FacesThis white paper explains how interferometry can improve process control in fiber optic component manufacturing by ensuring good quality cleaved and polished end faces. It covers methods of...Photonics.com 8/31/2018WEBINARSComputational Microscopy, Sensing and Diagnostics for Telemedicine and Global Health ApplicationsAdditional Questions and Answers from the Webinar are below: With more than 6 billion cell phone users in the world, the majority of them in developing countries, there are opportunities for...Photonics.com 6/5/2013Micro-Spectroscopy: Enabling Research From Novel Nano-Devices To Clinical DiagnosisMicro-spectroscopy is an ever developing modality for new and exciting research in the areas of nano-technology and bioscience. This webinar will look at modular approaches to microspectroscopy and...Photonics.com 3/24/2015Biophotonic Imaging for Medicine: A Digital ConferenceResearchers from around the world presented their latest work at “Biophotonic Imaging for Medicine: A Digital Conference.” Presentations focused on a range of light-based imaging and...Photonics.com 6/11/2015Simulating Metamaterials in the Terahertz RegimeIf you want to learn how to simulate metamaterials in the terahertz regime, then tune into this webinar, presented by COMSOL. Metamaterials are engineered to have specific material properties. They...Photonics.com 4/27/2017PHOTONICS DICTIONARY TERMSbandwidth-limited operationIn fiber optics, the limitation on performance imposed by the system bandwidth rather than the amplitude of the signal.EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009adapter1. In optics, the housing, usually cylindrical, that contains the lenses and iris diaphragm of a camera. 2. In fiber optics, a device for coupling two connectors.EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009buffer1. In fiber optics, a protective material applied as an optical fiber cover that has no optical function. 2. In image processing, a peripheral that stores data between two active processing stages.EDU.photonics.com 9/8/2009normalized frequencyAlso referred to as the V number in fiber optics; the normalized frequency is a dimensionless quantity, denoted by the symbol V, given by: where a is waveguide core radius, l is wavelength in vacuum,...EDU.photonics.com 3/5/2018MEDIASCHOTT Solutions for InVitro DiagnosticsLight is not always simply light when it comes to clinical diagnoses, light is the key to prediction accuracy in analytical quality. Our solution: a flexible fiber optic multi-branch device with...Photonics.com 3/14/2018Photonics on the Showroom Floor and in the Lab - LIGHT MATTERS 02.2018On this month's episode of Light Matters, we take you on a brief tour of the Higgins Laboratories at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). Quinsigamond Community College and WPI received a $4M grant...Photonics.com 2/21/2018Supporting the Photonics Industry from the Laboratory - LIGHT MATTERS 01.2018On this month's episode of Light Matters, we take you to central Massachusetts as Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Quinsigamond Community College take on a comprehensive joint photonics laboratory...Photonics.com 1/18/2018Photonics West 2017 Ushers in the New Year - LIGHT MATTERS 02.2017Photonics Media followed the photons all the way to San Francisco earlier this month for SPIE’s Photonics West 2017. The year truly begins with this event for many in the industry, as it is a symbol...Photonics.com 2/23/2017PHOTONICS BUYERS' GUIDE CATEGORIESEndoscopesAn endoscope is a medical instrument used to view inside the human body. The endoscope may use a coherent fiber optic bundle or conventional optics to relay the image to the eye or a television...Fiber Management SystemsInfrared Fiber Optic FibersFiber Optic Data LinksCOMPANIESEvanescent Optics Inc.Evanescent Optics Inc. acquired the assets and employee group of Canadian Instrumentation & Research Ltd. in August 2009 and continues production and development of the suite of fiber optic...Photonics Buyers' GuidePhotonTec Berlin GmbHPhotonTec Berlin GmbH is located in the Center for Microsystems and Materials (ZMM) in Berlin-Adlershof, Germany. We focus on the development, production, and marketing of fiber-coupled diode lasers...Photonics Buyers' GuideIncom Inc.Incom is known as the world’s largest supplier of fused fiber optics solutions. We enable innovation in the medical, scientific, display, and defense industries. Combining the most progressive...Photonics Buyers' GuideZeus Industrial ProductsZeus delivers precision polymer solutions that transform businesses, markets, and lives. We have dedicated 50 years to building partnerships, products, and services. Headquartered in Orangeburg,...Photonics Buyers' Guide